Yuzhny Island (Russian: Южный остров, romanized: Yuzhniy ostrov, lit.

It has an area of 33,275 square kilometres (12,800 sq mi), which while smaller than the northern island of Severny, still makes it one of the largest islands in the world.

It is separated from Severny Island by the narrow Matochkin Strait, which is covered with ice most of the year.

Originally home to the Nenets people, the island was largely evacuated in the 1950s to make way for nuclear weapons testing.

[2] Yuzhny Island is known for its large seabird population.